The German Federal Ministry of Health (BMG) has just announced that the statutory health insurance (SHI) generated a plus of 1.3 billion euros in the first half of 2020. Revenues of a total of 129.9 billion euros are offset by expenditures of „only“ 128.6 billion euros, as Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn recently stated. According to this statement, there are two reasons for the revenue surplus. On the one hand, savings were made because German citizens went to the doctor less often for fear of a corona infection, and on the other hand, there were „extreme“ savings because hospital stays due to postponed operations were simply eliminated. This special effect, which cannot be repeated so quickly, was particularly noticeable in the months of April to June, as the expenditure of the 105 statutory health insurance funds fell by 0.9 percent in direct comparison with the same quarter of the previous year, as the Chairman of the Board of Management of the Central Association of German Health Insurance Funds, Doris Pfeiffer, has just explained. However, Spahn is still unable to accurately assess the impact of the COVID 19 pandemic by the end of this year, he explained. The health fund, which is made up of contributions from the insured and federal subsidies, is fighting against this with a deficit of 7.2 billion euros because payments have been made to compensate for freed-up bed capacities in clinics and hospitals and for the expansion of intensive care beds.
